The Nats have been mediocre or worse since COVID (unrelated... OR IS IT) and this year feels different. The young bats are improving to the point you think the line-up can keep the Nats competitive for the season and with some pitching luck... Look we're not talking playoffs here but .500? Or at least best record since 2019?
But before you take a close to .500 record as a sign of things being different let's remember
2025 : June 6th the Nats were 30-33.
2024 : June 23rd the Nats were 38-39
2021 : June 30th the Nats were 40-38
Starting decently does not guarantee anything other than this team isn't going to be an under 60 win historic loser like the 2022 squad.
We're edging closer and closer to real evaluation time in terms of stats, but as these season records show us things can go any which way for entire teams let alone players. Hell the very first Nats season - where they surprisingly had a huge NL East lead around July 4th only to finish .500 - should have told you that. Then again I guess you'd have to be at least in your late 20s to have learned that lesson.
Even if the Nats are closing in on the All-Star Break around .500 there are no promises for a team that doesn't have a history of winning, that's dependent on kids with only a couple seasons of 150+ game rigors under their belt, and an organization with little depth to deal with injuries and a likelihood to want to make some late season trades with an eye to the future.
Enjoy the .500 but don't expect the .500.
1 comment:
I agree that .500 is on drugs. But the Nats' record is pretty close to that predicted by their run differential, which argues that their wins are real: not just luck. 72-75 wins is not too much to hope for, although it may not happen, especially if Abrams & Griffin are traded.
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